So brand new to this. Am trying to duplicate a sweeter cider for my girlfriend and I. Started mainly around the panty dropper recipe. Used EC1118 yeast. 4 gallons of cider, four cans of apple concentrate, two cans limeaid, two pounds of sugar, 1 tbs each of yeast nutrient and energizer and topped to five gallons in the carboy with spring water.

Is bubbling really healthy now. Starting specific gravity was 1.060. Am going to leave in the primary until dry. Then rack to a secondary with some natures choice green apple and two more cans of concentrate. Let that chill and mellow for a couple weeks.

When I transfer to the bottling phase I want to not just back sweeten for carbonation (3/4 cup of dextrose) but sweeten.

Have some choices. Stevia is available locally. Xylitol is not. Who has made sweetened sparkling cider with Stevia? Want opinions. I have read a ton on here and realize most like it dry.

This is the very first batch. Everyone has to start somewhere. Looking for a Hornsbys Crisp or Draught final version. Next batch I will try for Woodchuck Granny Smith.

Drinking a batch of cider now that I sweetened with Truvia (brand name for Stevia). I fermented it dry and backsweetened with 9 teaspoons in the 5 gallons. It was just enough to take a bite out of the dryness without being overly sweet. Most people who have tried it liked it, but the toughest judge, my wife, loves it. My ratio is probably unique for my cider so I would suggest taking a small sample and slowly adding Stevia until you get to a sweetness level you like and then calculating for your total volume. Stevia is [U]much[U] sweeter than cane sugar, so a little goes a long ways.